22

The city blurred past us as we sped through the empty streets, the scent of smoke still clinging to my clothes, my pulse a steady drumbeat in my ears. Every part of me was on high alert, my mind replaying the last moments before the explosion. The smirk on that man’s face. The way he whispered, too late.

Dante gripped the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles were white, his jaw clenched as he cut through the darkened roads. Luca sat in the passenger seat, pressing a cloth to a wound on his arm, his expression hard. No one spoke.

Because we all knew what that explosion meant.

We had walked into a setup.

And whoever had planned it was just getting started.

Dante finally broke the silence. “Luca, get me a list of every high-level associate Moretti worked with in the past five years.”

Luca barely nodded. “Already on it.”

Dante glanced at me in the rearview mirror. “That man—what did he mean when he said ‘too late’?”

I swallowed hard, my mind racing. “I don’t know. But he wasn’t scared, Dante. He knew something.”

Dante’s grip tightened on the wheel. “Then we find out what.”

I exhaled, my hands curling into fists. “You think this is bigger than Moretti?”

Dante’s smirk was sharp, dangerous. “I think Moretti was nothing compared to what’s coming.”

A chill ran through me.

I had stepped into a war I hadn’t even realized existed. And now? There was no way out.

Back at the safe house, the tension was suffocating.

Dante’s men were already waiting, their faces grim, their postures stiff. News of the explosion had spread fast. We weren’t just fighting shadows anymore. We were being hunted.

Dante didn’t waste time. He stepped into the main room, his voice cold, controlled. “We have a problem.”

Luca tossed a folder onto the table. “Two of Moretti’s known associates have disappeared in the last 24 hours. No bodies. No messages. Just gone.”

Dante’s jaw tightened. “Someone’s cleaning house.”

I crossed my arms. “Or sending a message.”

Luca exhaled. “It gets worse.” He pulled out a phone, scrolling through an image before handing it to Dante.

I leaned over his shoulder, my stomach twisting.

It was a picture of my father.

Tied to a chair.

A knife pressed against his throat.

A single message below it:

Come alone, Castelli. Or he dies.

My breath caught.

Dante’s body went still. His fingers flexed around the phone, his entire frame radiating controlled fury.

I took a shaky breath. “Dante.”

His voice was lethal. “No.”

I blinked. “What?”

He turned to me, his expression dark. “I know what you’re thinking, and the answer is no.”

I clenched my fists. “You don’t even know what I’m going to say.”

Dante’s smirk was cold. “You’re going to say we should go. That it’s a trap, but you don’t care because it’s your father.” His eyes burned into mine. “Am I wrong?”

I swallowed hard. “No.”

His jaw flexed. “That’s exactly why you’re staying here.”

Rage flared in my chest. “Like hell I am.”

Dante exhaled, his patience thinning. “You walk into this, Olivia, you die.”

I stepped closer, tilting my chin up. “Then I die fighting.”

Dante’s smirk disappeared. His fingers ghosted over my wrist, his voice lowering. “I don’t lose people.”

My breath hitched.

For a second, just a second, the walls between us cracked.

Then Luca cleared his throat. “We don’t have time for this.”

Dante stepped back, nodding once. “We move at dawn.”

I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding.

This was it.

One way or another, this ended tomorrow.

Dawn came too fast.

The sky was painted in soft oranges and deep blues, but there was nothing peaceful about the storm brewing in my chest.

Dante stood at the head of the convoy, dressed in black, his presence commanding. His men loaded their weapons, their faces unreadable.

Luca handed me a vest. “Put this on.”

I frowned. “I don’t need.”

He cut me off. “Yes, you do.”

I sighed, strapping it on.

Dante approached, his gaze flickering to the vest before meeting my eyes. “You stay behind me.”

I rolled my eyes. “You don’t own me, Castelli.”

His smirk was sharp, full of something dark. “Not yet.”

I ignored the way my pulse jumped.

Dante checked his gun, then nodded. “Let’s finish this.”

The location in the message led us to an abandoned industrial building on the outskirts of the city.

Too obvious. Too predictable.

A trap.

Dante’s men spread out, weapons raised, scanning every shadow. My heart pounded as I followed him inside, my fingers curling around the grip of my gun.

The air smelled of oil and rust. The space was empty—too empty.

Then...

A voice.

“Right on time.”

I froze.

A man stepped from the shadows, tall, well-dressed, a smirk playing on his lips.

Dante’s entire body went rigid. “Gabriel.”

My stomach dropped.

Dante knew him.

Gabriel’s smirk widened. “It’s been a long time, Castelli.”

Dante’s gun lifted. “Not long enough.”

Gabriel chuckled. “Still so predictable.” His eyes flicked to me, something sharp in his gaze. “And this must be Olivia.”

My skin crawled.

Dante’s finger flexed over the trigger. “You have three seconds to tell me where her father is before I put a bullet in your skull.”

Gabriel sighed. “So impatient.” He gestured behind him, and two men dragged my father forward, blood staining his temple, his breathing ragged.

My heart clenched. “Dad.”

His eyes fluttered open. “Olivia…”

Dante didn’t move. “Let him go.”

Gabriel smirked. “Of course. But first…” He pulled a gun from his jacket, aiming it directly at me.

Dante’s gun was up in an instant. “That’s a mistake.”

Gabriel tilted his head. “Is it?”

A slow realization settled in my stomach.

This wasn’t about Moretti.

This wasn’t just about revenge.

Gabriel wanted Dante.

And he was using me to get to him.

Dante’s voice was low, lethal. “Put the gun down.”

Gabriel grinned. “Or what?”

Dante’s smirk returned, cold and deadly. “Or I kill you first.”

The room went silent.

And then...

Gunfire.

Chaos.

My father was shoved aside.

Dante tackled me to the ground as bullets whizzed past.

I gasped, reaching for my gun, my vision blurring.

Gabriel disappeared into the shadows.

Dante pulled me up, his eyes burning. “We end this. Now.”

I nodded, adrenaline rushing through me.

Because this time, I wasn’t just fighting to survive.

I was fighting to win.